Achar Murg ( chicken)

Just a variety of chicken.The measurements I am giving, make this dish real spicy!!
My grade: Good
Preparation time: 2 hrs.
Working time: 30 min.
Ingredients:
Chicken: 1 kg
Chili powder:2 tbsp
lemon: 3-4
Ginger-garlic paste:2 tbsp
Cumin powder:1 tsp
Green chillies: 4
Curry leaves: a small bunch
Coriander powder: 2 tsp
Salt to taste
Oil:4 tbsp
For seasoning:
Cumin seeds:1 tsp
Mustard seeds:1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds: 1 tsp
Red chili: 1

Method:
Clean the chicken and cut it into medium sized pieces.
Marinate chicken for 1 hr. along with salt,chili powder,green chili, curry leaves, cumin powder, ginger-garlic paste and coriander powder.

Heat oil in pan, fry the seasoning ingredients.When they are done,add this seasoning to the marinated chicken and close the lid immediately.
Heat oil in pan,boil the chicken pieces on low to medium heat.
Serve hot with rice.

Scientific Question..
How does blood reach your head?
simple!
Liquid always flows towards Empty Space!

Mint rice

This is one of my favourites as this is an easy and healthy dish.

My grade: good

Preparation time: 45 min.

Working time: 20 min.

Ingredients:

Mint leaves: 2 big bunches

Onion :1 large (chop)

Green chillies: 3-4

Ginger- garlic paste: 1-2 tsp

Garam Masala: 1 tsp

Rice: 2 cups

Oil: 3 tbsp

Salt to taste

Method:

Separate mint leaves from stems.Otherwise the stem portions without leaves and chop.

Clean them and dry them.

Heat 1 tbsp of oil in pan.Fry these leaves until they wilt and keep aside.When they are cool, grind them along with green chillies into a coarse paste.Add little water if required.

Add 2 tbsp of oil to the same pan.Add chopped onions and saute till they are golden brown.

Add ginger-garlic paste and saute till the raw smell is gone.

Now, add salt, garam masala and ground mint chilly paste.

Cook for 2 min.

Transfer this to the rice cooker that contains washed rice.Add 4-5 cups of water depending on the type of rice used.

Sprinkle lemon juice over it and cook.

Serve hot with fresh curd.

Apple- banana milkshake

This is from the list of my little experiments. I used Ricotta cheese instead of ice-cream as I had it in my refrigerator.
My grade: good
Preparation time: 10 min.
Ingredients:
Apples :2
Apples can also be substituted with strawberries.Then it becomes strawberry- banana milkshake of course.
Ripe banana:1
Ricotta cheese or any ice cream: 2-3 tbsp
Sugar to taste
Milk : 3 -4 tbsp
Method:
Grind apples into a smooth paste first.
Then add rest of the ingredients and grind well.
If you want to dilute the drink, then add some more milk.
Refrigerate before serving.

Tamil rasam

I learned this from my relative. There is one good point about this dish.I have accidentally found out that this is the best medicine for running nose.Drink it before going to bed (if you are not allergic to pepper or any other ingredient in this dish) and get up from the bed in the morning feeling fresh with clear nasal passages.
Usually, I make it in 2 forms: diluted and concentrated.
Concentrated form during meals along with rice and the diluted one to drink directly.It tastes awesome when you drink rather than eat with rice.Measurements given here are highly approximate.
My grade for this dish is Excellent

Preparation time: 20 min.
Ingredients:
First list of ingredients:
Blend the following items into a coarse paste: no need to roast them in oil
Coriander leaves: a small bunch ( may be 6 or 10 stems)
Curry leaves: 6-7 leaves
Garlic: 2 cloves
Red chillies: 2- 3
Cumin : 1 tsp
Coriander seeds: 1 tsp
Pepper: 1- 2 tsp
Second list of ingredients:
Turmeric:1/4 tsp
Tomato: 1 small ( chop)
Tamarind paste: 2 tbsp
Mustard: 1 tsp
Water: 3-4 cups
Oil : 1 tsp
Salt to taste

Method:
To the water, add turmeric, tomato, tamarind paste, salt and the ground paste.
Let the water boil.Water should not be over boiled.
In another small pan, heat oil and add mustard to it.Saute for 2 min.
When the water is boiled, add the mustard to it.
Garnish with coriander leaves.

Banana cake

First of all let me tell you this: Do not expect this cake to be fluffy.This is somewhat like pancake.Some of my friends liked it and some did not like it.But we can munch.My grade for this is: average.

Preparation time: 45 min.
Working time: 15 min.

Ingredients:
Ripe bananas: 3 (mash)
All purpose flour:1 and a half cup
Cinnamon powder: 1/2 tsp
Baking powder: 1 and 1/2 tsp
Baking soda: 1/2 tsp
Salt : a pinch
Sugar: 1/2 cup
Egg whites:1/4 cup or 2 eggs
Butter:2 tsp
Yogurt: 1/2 cup
Nutmeg/ almonds/ raisins: a handful

Method:
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Grease the baking dish.
In a bowl no:1, mix - flour, baking powder,baking soda and cinnamon.
In a bowl no:2, mix the following ingredients well with a whisk or electric mixer- Sugar, Eggs, yogurt, butter, mashed bananas and nuts .
Now, transfer the contents of bowl no:1 to bowl no:2.
Mix well.
Transfer this to greased baking dish and bake for 30 to 40 min. until the toothpick or metal spoon inserted comes out clean.

Banana

We all know that bananas are rich in potassium. Here is some more information about bananas.

• Glucose,fructose and sucrose levels are high in banana.So, they give instant energy.This is the reason why athletes' favourite snack item is banana. Eat 2 bananas and do the toughest athletic job for 2 and half hours without any complaint.
• Banana is rich in potassium and low in sodium. So,its helpful for lowering blood pressure.
• It is rich in Iron. So anemic peoples benefit a lot from banana.
• Potassium in blood helps in the supply of sufficient oxygen levels to our brain.Because of this, in stressful conditions, have a banana rather than yelling and cursing.
• It helps in relieving PMS( premenstrual syndrome) symptoms as it supplies Vita.B6.
• As it contains the protein, Tryptophan; banana acts as a natural cure for depression.
• It is a good medicine for gastrointestinal ulcers, acidity, constipation too.
• If banana is taken along with curd, it is supposed to increase body weight especially in children.So,underweight children will definitely benefit from this.

Fresh flowers

Want to keep your flowers in flower vase fresh for longer time?
Add 1 tsp of vinegar or a pinch of bleaching powder to the water.

Pepper curry

This recipe is mainly for parties.I felt lazy to take the picture of this dish.So ...no picture.If you try with yellow, red and green peppers, this dish gives a beautiful appearance. But yellow peppers are somewhat expensive.
Preparation time:30 min.
Ingredients:


Bell pepper: 2 (chop into small pieces)
Ginger-garlic paste:2 tsp
Medium Onion: 1 (finely chopped)
Oil: 3 tbsp
Salt to taste

Blend the following ingredients to coarse powder:
Peanuts: a handful
Cinnamon :4"
Cloves:4
Dry coconut powder: 2 tbsp

Method:
Heat oil in pan.
Saute onions.
Add ginger-garlic paste.Saute till raw smell is gone.
Add ground powder - fry for 2 min.
Add chopped pepper, saute for 2 min.
Add half a cup of water.
Cook until pepper becomes soft and oil rises to top.

Miracle

Man is always in search of miracles.Humans wait for some miracle to happen in their lives. We love to live in reveries. A poor man waits for a miracle that makes him billionaire not even millionaire.He dreams about living in a mansion.Wearing designer apparel.Staying in world's greatest restaurants.Main point of all his fantasies is having things that he cannot afford to have in his real life. A teenage girl fantasises herself as the most beautiful girl in this world.She imagines her body as the perfect figure. She wants everyone to turn and look at her.She believes in Cinderella stories. That is why the comic characters: Barbie, superman, spider man, He-man,Richie rich etc. Waiting for something nice to happen in life is hope.Hope makes people live in this world.Hope is such a wonderful feeling.Hope makes us go through any struggle. Hope created movies, comics, fairy tales.They are also good because they give inspiration to invent things that perform those miracles. Hope mixed with practicality built NASA, WTCs and many more.Hope + practicality + perseverance made Niel Armstrong to land on the moon, Alan Turning, Konrad Zuse, John Von Neumann and others to invent this magic box called 'computer'.Without this magic box ,you would not be sitting and reading this now. We pray to God. Many of us pray to God . We call it a prayer but we ask Him to bestow us with miracles with a single wave of His great hand.In our view, God is the one who can do ANYTHING in the universe. He can stop , forward, rewind the time. He can lift a skyscraper with a single finger... and many more.So, basically God is a super super man.We want him that way.We don't give him any other option.If the God himself comes and tells us that he is not a super super man but a good man with his heart full of love.He can give us nothing but tons and tons of love, then how many of us still pray and believe that He is God? Hope is the essence of life. Without hope, man finds no purpose in dragging life.Sometimes miracles happen too.But is it justifiable to always dream about miracles and nothing else?Hoping of having something we don't have or not accepting what we have right now and incessantly complaining about life the way it is going? There is a festival called 'Ugaadi'.In that ,there is a custom that all the family members should together eat one dish called ugaadi pachadi.Its a mixture of all types of tastes from sweet to bitter.This custom is trying to make us learn that life is full of events that make our heart feel different emotions from sweet to sour to bitter.Do not slump when the emotion is bitter.Do not jump when the emotion is sweet.Be balanced.That dish tastes awesome.Its a feast to taste buds because they enjoy all the tastes at the same time.Life is also like that.Live completely. Live and let live.Nobody has right to molest other souls. Spread happiness wherever you go.The place should be filled with happiness and positive vibrations.Do not contaminate the ambiance with negative emotions.Let us try to make our lives a fairy tale full of happiness, cheerful smiles even in 'crisis times'.Fairy tale need not mean that we get what we crave for.It also means that we live happily forever and ever and ever no matter what. There are comic characters that make us think that it is possible to live life that way.Take the example of Oswald.I love Oswald.

Bruschetta

On one lazy evening, I tried this recipe given on the back of RITZ crackers box. Its taste comes under the grade: average.
Preparation time: 15 min.
Ingredients:
Tomato( finely chopped): 1/2 cup
Fat free shredded Mozzarella cheese: 1/4 cup
Green onions( fine chop): 1/4 cup
Fat free Italian dressing: 1 tbsp
Fat free shredded Parmesan cheese: 1 tbsp
Reduced fat crackers :12
Method:
Preheat oven to 300 F.
Mix all the above ingredients except crackers.
Place 1 tbsp of mixture on the crackers.
Place them on the baking sheet.
Bake until cheese melts. That comes around 5 min.
Serve hot with tea or coffee.

Easy and tasty sweet

I tried to make a simpler version of Rasmalai but in vain.This experiment turned out into an another tasty recipe.

Preparation time: 20 min.

Ingredients:

Whole milk Ricotta cheese : 2 cups

Sugar : 1 and half a cup

Milk : 1 cup

Cardamom : 1/2 tsp

Saffron : a pinch ( optional)

Almonds & Pistachio : 1 tsp each ( optional)

Method:

Take 2 cups of ricotta cheese & half a cup of sugar in a mixing bowl. Mix them really well until the last grain of sugar dissolves in the cheese.Either you take the help of electric hand mixer ( it would make this step easier) or a whisk.

Spread this mix in a baking dish evenly. Place an aluminium wrap in the baking dish, grease it and then pour this mixture. This makes 'cleaning-the-baking dish' hassle easy.

Bake it at 250 F.This again depends on the condition of your oven.Bake it until the toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the mix.That might take around 15 min.

Meanwhile, boil half and half milk & sugar.When it becomes 2/3rd the total volume, add cardamom and saffron.

Take out the baking dish when it is done, cut the prepared substance ( could be Rasmalai pieces) into desired shapes.

Add these pieces to the boiled milk. Garnish with the nuts.Chill & serve.

Rasmalai

I felt this recipe tedious and time taking. But when I tasted it, I forgot my exhaustion and felt revived.This dish is excellent for children but not for adults.The only reason why I tried this is because we spend a lot of money for fresh sweets if we have a sweet tooth.I just wanted to see how much this costs if I make them at home and do they taste in par with the outside sweets.I was successful. Its worth giving a try.

Preparation time: 3 hrs

Working time: 30 min.

Serving size: 6-8 members

Ingredients:

1.If you are preparing from scratch, here is the list:

Whole milk: 3 litres

Sugar:2 and 1/2 cups

water:4 cups

Almonds & Pistachio: 2 tsp each ( thin slices)

Cardamom powder:1/2 tsp

Saffron: a pinch

2.If you want to buy paneer from outside...then:

Milk: 1 litre

Rest of the ingredients are same.

But paneer should be freshly made and soft. I didn't want to take risk as these sweets go for a party. So I made from scratch.

Method:

If you see my previous posts, you'll find a recipe called 'Rosogolla'.I have described how to make paneer in that recipe.The residue that remains in the muslin cloth/ handkerchief is called 'Paneer'.

Step 1#Take a thick and wide bottomed if possible non stick vessel.Let us call this as vessel no.2. Boil 1 litre of milk and 1 cup of sugar on medium and then low heat.Milk should be boiled till the contents become 2/3 of the original volume.When it is done, add sliced almonds & pistachio. Sprinkle cadamom powder.

Step 2#Take one more vessel, just as described above and let us call this as vessel no.1. In this vessel, follow the procedure of Rosogolla completely.

Start step 1 ahead of step 2 in order to save time.

When boiling of paneer balls for 15 min., is over, drain the balls with help of a strainer. Transfer these balls into vessel no.2 after the step 1 is complete. Allow the balls to boil for 2 more minutes.Remove from heat. Transfer this carefully into the serving bowl, sprinkle saffron over it.It gives a beautiful yellow colour.( I didn't use saffron because a small amount may be 10 gram costed $10.I didn't add pistachio too.

Refrigerate it for 2-3 hrs and serve.

I agree that its laborious work but it boosts up your confidence graph wildly.

Ginger milk

On a hot summer evening, this drink tastes like heaven.Its damn easy too. Diabetics can also enjoy this.
Preparation time: 5 min.
Serving size: 4
Ingredients:
Milk :500 ml
Ginger: 100g (grate)
Honey: 100 ml or lesser ( that depends )
Method:

Blend all the above ingredients. Add ice cubes and serve.

Howzzat??!!! Pretty exciting,huh? It tasted good too. However, spend 5 min. of time and judge it by yourself.

Uses of Vinegar

Adding 1-2 tbsp of vinegar to meat shortens its cooking time and also gives good taste to it.

Clean all of your glass and ceramic utensils with vinegar in order to revive their shiny appearance.

Its a perfect all purpose cleaner & disinfectant in kitchen.

Pepper Chicken

I think introductions are not needed for pepper chicken.Most of the people must be knowing it,right?
Preparation time:3 and half an hour.
Working time:45 min.
Ingredients:
Chicken:1 kilo
Onions:2 large
Chop one onion; blend the other onion
Oil:3 tbsp
For marination:
Ginger-garlic paste:2 tsp
Pepper powder:3 tbsp( that depends)
Vinegar: 2 tbsp
Turmeric:1/4 tsp
Salt to taste
You can add ground onion paste in this bowl itself or fry it separately in the later procedure.This step is optional.
Method:

Clean the chicken.Cut into large pieces.
Marinate the chicken pieces in a bowl with the above said ingredients for 2-3 hrs.
If you keep the bowl with chicken in refrigerator, it marinates faster.
Heat oil in a thick bottomed pan.
Add onions- saute.
When they are almost done,add onion paste.
When onions are done,add chicken pieces.
Add water if needed.Usually it is not needed.So be careful, if you are adding water.
Cook on low flame.
It goes well with rice and roti.

Boil vegetables

If you do not like it when your vegetables change their colour after boiling, next time squeeze some lemon juice in the water you are boiling the vegetables.

By sprinkling some lemon juice over the top of the rice when cooking rice, the rice grains do not stick to one another and keep them separate. This helps during biryani preparations.

Chicken soup

Here is a yummy recipe for dinner. This is very filling.

Preparation time: 15 min.

Ingredients:

Ground chicken: 3 sausages size

Chicken broth:396 grams

( Chicken broths which are 100% fat free and 33% less sodium than regular products are available. Water can also be used instead of this.)

Rice noodles:2 handfuls

Cilantro: 5-6 leaves(finely chopped but do not make into a paste)

Mint :1 leaf ( fine chop)

Ginger:1/2 inch

Garlic:1 clove

Green chili:1

Soy sauce:1/2 tsp

Vinegar:1/2 tsp

Scallions:3

Celery:3

EVOO( olive oil):1 tbsp

Chinese salt:a pinch

Salt to taste ( if you are using chicken broth ,do not add salt)

Boil rice noodles, drain them and keep aside.

Heat oil in pan.

Add ginger, garlic, green chili, mint and cilantro.

Saute.

Add ground chicken.

When they are almost done,add boiled rice noodles and saute for 2 min.

Then add soy sauce, vinegar- saute for 2 min.

Now, add chicken broth , Chinese salt.

When it boils, add scallions, celery- saute for 5 min.

Remove from heat and serve hot.

But be careful while eating, ground chicken takes longer time than the other ingredients in the soup.So, there is a high probability of burning your tongue.

Protect your fashion jewelry

Are you wondering how to stop the discoloration of your artificial jewelry? Simple,..........

Apply 2 coatings of colourless, transparent nail polish on them.This gives shiny appearance too.

This trick has got one more advantage.If your skin is allergic to the metal that is used in the jewelry, applied layer of nail polish avoids direct contact of the metal with the skin.

Hiccups??

Want an instant remedy for hiccups? Try one of these: Hold your breath for sometime.Then, take a deep breath ( deep into the lungs) and release it. Drink a glass of water. Keep sugar crystals on the tongue for sometime. Chew a piece of bread. If they are continuing for hours,consult your GP immediately.

Prawn curry

Prawns are usually not good for health. But they come under category of 'lovers of taste buds'.So, to pamper your taste buds, here is the recipe:

Preparation time: 30 min.

Ingredients:

Prawns: 500 grams ( shells removed and cleaned)

Onion (big): 1 finely chopped

Tomato(medium): 1 chopped

Ginger-garlic paste:1 tbsp

Curry leaves: 8-10

Coriander powder: 1 tsp

Cumin powder:1/2 tsp

Garam Masala:1/4 tsp

Red chili Pwd to taste

Salt to taste

Coriander leaves for garnishing

Oil: 5 tbsp

Heat oil in a pan.

Add onions and green chillies. saute.

When they turn golden brown,add ginger-garlic paste and fry till the raw smell is gone.

Then add curry leaves,tomatoes, turmeric, coriander powder, cumin powder, red chili powder.

Mix well & cook for 5 min.

Add cleaned prawns & salt.Mix well so that prawns are completely covered with gravy.

Cook for 5 min.Then add 1 cup of water.

Cook on medium heat with a lid closed on the pan until the 3/4 th of the added water is evaporated.

Add garam masala. Mix.

Garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve with hot rice.

Heart burn?

Add a small piece of fresh ginger root to a glass of lukewarm water.Keep it aside for a few minutes.Drink this water before your meals.This helps you from the heart burn.

Chew 4-5 almonds.

Eat carrot/ banana.

Never go to sleep immediately after having a meal.

Fish fry

We've all heard about eating fish to get more Omega-3's fatty acids in our diet.But some fishes are good and some are bad. I am still trying to find out the list about good and bad.According to what I know here is the list:
Good fish: Salmon, Cod fish, Mackerel, Bass, Snapper, Sardine
Bad fish: Cat fish, Smoked salmon.
For more information, check this website: http://nutrition.about.com/od/healthyfood1/a/goodfishbadfish.htm

Preparation time: 40 min.

Ingredients:

Fish fillets:6-7

Bread crumbs

Make a paste of the below ingredients:

Ginger-garlic :1 tbsp

Cumin seeds:1/4 tsp

Fennel seeds:3/4 tsp

Coriander Pwd:1 tsp

Onion chopped:2 tbsp

Garam Masala:1/2 tsp

Red chili Pwd:2 tsp

Salt to taste

Marinate fish fillets with the above paste for 20 min. Keep the marinated fillets in refrigerator.This hastens the marination process.

Heat oil in a pan.Cover the fish with bread crumbs.

Add 10 to 12 curry leaves.

Add fish and cook on low flame for 7- 8 min.

Flip over.Cook for 4- 5 min.

If you do not want to use oil for frying , oven baking is a healthy option. But for that, marinate for about 4- 5 hrs.

Ivy gourd (tindora) curry

Ivy gourd might control diabetes because researchers say it suppresses the enzymes involved in glucose production.

This recipe requires more oil than that is required for normal curries.

Preparation time:30 min.

Ingredients:

Ivy gourd: 250 grams ( chop into long slices)

Oil :1/3 cup

Onions:1 small

Green chillies:3

Salt to taste

turmeric:1/4 tsp

Red chili powder:1/2 tsp

tamarind paste:1 tbsp

Garam Masala: a pinch

Masala powder: fry the below ingredients and blend into powder

Coconut powder:3 tbsp

Sesame seeds:1 tbsp

Coriander seeds:1 tbsp

Cumin seeds:1 tbsp

Peanuts:3 tbsp

Fry the Ivy gourd slices in oil.This step requires more oil.Fry them till they are done.Do not overcook as they became paste.

Remove the slices and keep them aside.

Add onions, green chillies to the same pan - saute.

Add the ground powder and fry.

Add salt, turmeric and red chili powder .

Add tamarind extract, water(about half a cup) to make gravy.

Cook for about 3- 5 min.s

Add Ivy gourd & cook.

Add garam Masala.

Cook for 2 min.

Serve with hot rice or roti.

Cauliflower kurma

Picture is not indicative of actual dish.It comes out with more beautiful appearance.That is by cutting cauliflower into large and medium florets.With small sized florets,it gives above appearance.

Cauliflower is enriched with Vita.s A,C,E and B-complex.But, excessive cooking will destroy some B vitamins, most C and all E. Preparation time:40 min. Ingredients: Cauliflower : 1 small (cut it into medium and large sized florets but not small) Onions : 1 medium (long slices) Green chillies: 3 Cashew nuts : 3 tbsp ( coarse grind) Coconut milk : 200 ml (1/2 tin ) Bay leaf Milk:2 tbsp Salt to taste Turmeric: 1/4 tsp Red chili powder:1/2 tsp Masala (blend them into paste) : Cardamom : 3 Cloves :3 Ginger 1" piece Garlic:2 pods Boil cauliflower in water.To this water add 2 tbsp of milk. Heat oil in pan-fry bay leaf. Add onions and green chillies.Saute until onions turn into golden brown ( you know this,right?) Add cashew nut powder.Saute. Add turmeric,red chilli powder and salt. Add Masala paste-fry for 2 min. Add boiled cauliflower florets .Mix well. Add coconut milk.Mix well so that each floret is well coated with gravy. Cook on low flame for 10 min with lid on the pan. Serve with hot rice or roti.

Rosogolla

Here is the recipe of a famous sweet.You need to start this on a leisure day.Although it is not a laborious process, it demands your attention. This is good for taste buds but not for health. Preparation time: 3 hrs. working time : 30 min. waiting time :2 1/2 hrs. Serving size :15 balls Ingredients: Whole milk : 1 litre Sugar : 1 and 1/2 cups Water : 4 cups Citric acid :1/2 tsp Rose essence : 2-3 drops Boil milk ( or microwave for 20 min.) Let it cool for a couple of hours. Remove the cream layer. Reheat for about 15 min.Let the cream layer form.Remove it. Now, dissolve the citric acid in little water.Add this to milk .Stir slowly till milk is fully curdled.( Its fun to watch) Keep it like that for 5 min.Do not disturb. Strain the milk through a muslin cloth.The solid part that remains in the cloth should be washed under cold running water.This makes handling the hot substance easy. Press out excess water & remove into a wide plate.Make it into soft dough. The filtrate is called 'whey'. Heat sugar &water in a wide saucepan.Wait till it boils.Stir it occasionally. Meanwhile, gently knead the dough and make equal sized balls.Do not make big balls like what we see in the prepared dish.Make small balls. They swell once they imbibe the sugar syrup. When the sugar syrup starts boiling,add these balls to the syrup.Cover with a perforated lid. Boil for 13-15 min. Let it cool. Add essence & chill for 4-5 hrs. It tastes more or less like what we buy from stores.When one of my relatives tasted this,she was telling one brand name .She took some time to believe that I made this from scratch. Some healthy information about Whey: Liquid whey contains lactose, vitamins, and minerals along with traces of fat. Researchers discovered that whey appears to stimulate insulin release.So. we can prepare some dishes with whey.

Fire precautions

In our apartment complex, a recent fire accident made me prepare this post.Consider these fire precautions when cooking up your next concoction:

• Heat cooking oil slowly.It can catch fire if heated too quickly.
• If oil begins to boil, remove it from the heat source.
• Do not overfill the pan.Overflowing oil will catch fire quickly.
• Never use water to extinguish a cooking oil fire. Cover the fire with a large lid or smother the fire with baking soda (it stops the supply of oxygen necessary for the combustion).
• Wipe up appliances after spills and regularly clean the grease that builds up on the stove, oven and exhaust fan.( oil and grease- when combined with heat and electricity-are ingredients in a combustible recipe).
• Make sure the pan is not adulterated with water.Pressure from the boiling water underneath can cause the oily layer on top to explode.
• If you are using electric stove,never spill salt on the burner.Fire comes from nowhere ( personal experience).
• And of course, make sure you are not wearing any type of loosely hanging clothes.

Ginger chutney

Here is a recipe that goes well with any breakfast items like dosa, idli etc. Its kinda dipping sauce.But its shelf life is only for 2 or 3 days if preservatives are not added.



Ginger has got anti-inflammatory properties.In alternative medicines, this is used for gastrointestinal problems such as nausea , motion sickness etc. but modern science does not have much conclusive support.Though there are claims for efficacy in all causes of nausea, modern science recommends against taking ginger root for morning sickness commonly associated with pregnancy due to possible mutagenic effects. Nevertheless, Chinese women traditionally have taken ginger root during pregnancy to combat morning sickness.



However,Some people are allergic to ginger. Generally, this is reported as having a gaseous component. This may take the form of flatulence, or it may take the form of an extreme constriction or tightening in the throat necessitating uncontrollable burping to relieve the pressure.



Anyhow,Here is the recipe......

Preparation time:10 min.

Ingredients:



Ginger root - 5 or 6" ( Peel& chop)

Jaggery/sugar - 3 to 4 tbsp

Tamarind extract - 2 tbsp

Seasoning:

Split black gram - 1 tsp

Curry leaves /powder - 10 or 2 tsp

mustard, cumin 1/4 tsp each



salt to taste

oil -1 tbsp



Recipe:

pour 1/2 tbsp of oil in hot pan. Add ginger,saute for 2 min.Remove and keep aside.

Add the remaining oil to the pan-add seasoning to it.Fry for 2 min. Remove

To the blender jar, add above 2 items along with salt,tamarind and Jaggery( I personally prefer Jaggery for its colour and taste),water.

Grind into smooth paste.

Subscribe to: Comments (Atom)